@DrGoogle i have other languages but i got stuck in spanish freshman year. so would you recommend switching my language after taking two years?
No, I’m not. In general it’s best to stay with one language. But you said there were a lot of Spanish speakers and that’s why you didn’t do well, so my comment is you didn’t have to pick Spanish. My kid pick French against all advice.
But really what’s your definition of top schools? If it’s Ivies than maybe not.
I had only two years of French (stopped junior year) and was waitlisted at Stanford and admitted to Dartmouth. Granted, I did pass the AP Chinese exam my freshman year.
Is Chinese your native language? Because my kid knew of someone whose Japenese is a native language so she didn’t have to take any foreign language.
If the college requests 3+ years of a language, and you have 2, then yes, I think Spanish III is going to be better, IMO, than just about anything. In the college admissions process, colleges really don’t care what you’d prefer; if the college has listed its preferred recommendations/requirements, then it’s all about what it prefers.
I won’t speak for @DrGoogle, but IMO 4, even 3, years of one language is preferable to 2 years each in 2 different languages.
Of all the admission books that I’ve read, and I’ve read a lot because they were free from the library, it’s recommend sticking to the same language for 4 years. Same with everything. 4 years math, 4 years science, 4 years English and 4 years social science.
Look, four years trumps two. Three years trumps two. There are plenty of kids who take two years of one and one or two of another. Sometimes, because the school doesn’t offer more or has crazy misc courses they require for grad, which interfere. Sometimes, because they have an extraordinary STEM opportunity. Bottom line: it has to make sense. (Sense of some sort, not just: I got tired of it or I wasn’t any good or everyone else had native proficiency.) The competitive colleges have plenty of super kids to choose from.
I don’t care what the books say. This is about how adcoms will interpret, when looking at his whole record. OP seems to be a strong performer in his hs. His gpa is mid-90’s (hoping that his strongest grades are consistently math/sci.) He has some colleges in mind that will have competition from kids with more FL. He needs to view this from that competitive standpoint. Span 3 is the easy way. (I am curious what the lang grades were.)
We don’t know all his particulars. If he wants a STEM major, he should have all three AP core lab sci, AP calc, plus the rest of a rigorous schedule. IF this is about the choice between a higher level addl STEM class or DE, and he can’t fit in Span 3, online is an option. It may or may not cost (this depends on state programs,) and he should be able to either focus and do the year’s worth in a semester- or, if it is a program that doesn’t allow that fast track, he can still find the time.
And then, as we tell all kids, a good choice of safeties. Rutgers is not a loss. Agree with the earlier comment that it’s a peculiar NJ thing to put it down.
I agree your academics record is viewed in the context of your high school.
Read the school’s requirement. Some schools explicitly says 3-4 years of the same language.
I’m in the same boat as you with only 2 years of a language. If you think its worth taking an online is worth it, I would take it but just make sure it can be credited by your high school. You could also self-study on your own for an AP if you think you’ll be able to get a 4 or even better 5. I think at this point, just make sure your other classes are top- notch and very rigorous. As long the classes are rigorous, I think your GC will be able to vouch that you are hard-working and an impressive student. Most of the top schools “recommend” 3-4 years because that is what most of their students have taken. There probably have students who got in will only 2 or even 1 year depending on circumstances
I don’t know what state you are in. In California, 2 semesters of a community college language is equal to 3 years of high school language. These aren’t easy classes though, so probably not a good idea if regular high school Spanish was a problem.
@lookingforward yeah my schools is generic public school 4000 kids we dont have a fantastic stem program but I am taking all 3 ap sciences. currently trying for a mechE major and then getting an mba
@skieurope i am currently trying to switch into Spanish III, i just hope my gpa wont drop as ive had intelligent friends get straight 70s in the class
@billcsho i checked most of the schools im applying to, i have the minimum, but im going to switch into a third year of spanish
@QueenN22 i do have a rigorous schedule, my friend got into Princeton when it explicitly says “we strongly recommend four years” but she was slightly more competitive so I will most likely be taking spanish III
I appreciate everyones feedback if anyone has more opinions I seriously would love to hear them thank you very much
@Ynotgo i am from new jersey and yeah I do not have the money to pay for a college course
@pearmetty I hope it goes well with you especially if switching into a class may be hard as late as August. Another route could be if you have a Spanish honor society or club
@QueenN22 im pretty good with my counselor, switching should not be a problem, I can’t believe I did not join spanish club thats a great idea wow. oh well hopefully the good people at duke accept me!